Derenovation, 2004

A permanent installation for the WSPA Institute’s newly renovated building in the old shipbuilding school in the Gdansk Shipyards in Poland. One wall in the school was “derenovated” to restore it to its former appearance, uncovering old german text that had been previously covered over. Trompe-l’oeil paintings based on photographs of the interior of the school prior to its renovation were then painted directly onto the wall. The size of the paintings and the style of the trompe-l’oeil painted frames were based on frames found in the school during the renovation. The frames themselves were filled with mirrors and hung on the wall opposite so that viewers could literally see themselves reflected in the past of the building.